Leh was for centuries an important stopover on trade routes along the Indus Valley between Tibet, Kashmir, India and China.

The main goods carried were salt, grain, pashm or cashmere wool, charas or cannabis resin from the Tarim Basin, indigo, silk yarn and Banaras brocade.

Although there are a few indications that the Chinese knew of a trade route through Ladakh to India as early as the Kushan period (1st to 3rd centuries AD),[5] and certainly by the Tang dynasty,[6] little is actually known of the history of the region before the end of the 10th century, when Tibetan prince Skyid lde nyima gon (or Nyima gon), a grandson of the anti-Buddhist Tibetan king, Langdarma (r. c. 838 to 841), founded the kingdom.

[citation needed] Several towns and castles are said to have been founded by Nyima gon, and he apparently ordered the construction of the primary sculptures at Shey.

"In an inscription, he says he had them made for the religious benefit of the Tsanpo (the dynastical name of his father and ancestors), and of all the people of Ngaris (Western Tibet).

During the reign of Delegs Namgyal (1660–1685),[8] the nawab of Kashmir, then a province in the Mughal Empire, arranged for the Mongol army to temporarily leave Ladakh, though it returned later.

As payment for assisting Delegs Namgyal in the Tibet-Ladakh-Mughal War of 1679–1684, the nawab made a number of onerous demands.

The route from Srinagar was roughly the same as the road that today crosses the Zoji La (pass) to Kargil, then up the Indus Valley to Leh.

[10] The first recorded royal residence in Ladakh, built at the top of the high Namgyal ('Victory') Peak overlooking the present palace and town, is the now-ruined fort and gon-khang (Temple of the Guardian Divinities) built by King Tashi Namgyal.

If it was indeed built by Dards, it must pre-date the establishment of Tibetan rulers in Ladakh over a thousand years ago.

Manikhang is the area between the main bazaar of Leh and the historic Stalam path that leads up to the royal palace.

The White Maitreya Temple dates back to the reign of King Drakpa Bumd´e (Grags pa 'bum lde, r. ca 1410–1435), following the arrival of a mission sent to Ladakh by the Tibetan lama Tsongkhapa.

[12] The royal palace, known as Leh Palace, was built by King Sengge Namgyal (1612–1642),[16] presumably between the period when the Portuguese Jesuit priest Francisco de Azevedo visited Leh in 1631, and made no mention of it, and Sengge Namgyal's death in 1642.

The royal family moved their premises south to their current home in Stok Palace on the southern bank of the Indus River.

The Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) is in charge of governance in Leh.

The city gets occasional snowfall during winter, which is very cold by Indian standards, mainly due to its high elevation.

[27] The water for agriculture of Ladakh comes from the Indus, which runs low in March and April when barley-fields have the greatest need for irrigation.

Males constituted 70% of the population and females 30%, due to a large presence of transient labourers, traders and government employees.

In his time the Kalimaks (Calmuck Tartars), having invaded and obtained possession of the greater portion of Thibet [Ladakh], the Raja of that country claimed protection from the Emperor of Hindoostan.

Ibraheem Khan was accordingly deputed by that monarch to his assistance, and in a short time succeeded in expelling the invaders and placing the Raja once more on his throne.

The most dramatic part of this journey is the ascent up the 3,505-metre-high (11,499 ft) Zoji-la, a tortuous pass in the Great Himalayan Wall.

The Jammu and Kashmir State Road Transport Corporation (JKSRTC) operates regular deluxe and ordinary bus services between Srinagar and Leh on this route, with an overnight halt at Kargil.

Leh Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport has flights to and from Delhi, Jammu, Srinagar and Chandigarh.

Air India, SpiceJet, IndiGo & Vistara operate Delhi to Leh daily with multiple flights at peak times.